Meet the modeler: John Vorhes

Model train next to a station

How did you get started in the hobby? My love of trains started when I was six years old, watching steam engines on a branch line of the Union Pacific in the late 40’s. I recall being swept away with the sounds and power of the Consolidation (2-8-0) locomotives that stopped in my Dad’s hometown. […]

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O gauge realism is Herb Lindsay’s legacy

O gauge railroad yard with trains.

O gauge realism is Herb Lindsay’s legacy. One of the landmark layouts featured in Classic Toy Trains over the years has been the O gauge model railroad designed and built by the late hobbyist and his talented wife and fellow modeler, Dagmar Lindsay. How articles about Herb’s realistic tribute to railroading in central Pennsylvania during […]

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State Line Route in N scale: Road construction, Episode 18

Center line yellow stripes on a roadway on a model railroad

David and Cody team up to build roadways on the State Line Route project railroad. Cody shows how to use Walthers’ modern parking lot kit and styrene to make a parking lot for Brown-Smith Global. David tries a new technique for making roads, and he shows how to weather them and add center line striping. […]

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Polka dot plant

Polka dot plant on a garden railway

Polka dot plant introduction Common name: Polka-dot plant, Freckle face 
Latin name: Hypoestes phyllostachya
 Plant type: Annual 
USDA Hardiness Zones: 10-11 Cultural needs: Moist, well drained, slightly acidic soil; sun to part shade 
Plant size: 12-18″ (species), 6″ (hybrids) Who gets to decide how large a leaf is okay for a garden railway? The gardeners […]

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State Line Route in N scale: Modeling clear and muddy rivers, Episode 17

David is pouring two-part resin in to the river basin on the State Line Route project railroad

David shares two options for modeling rivers on the State Line Route. He demonstrates how to make a muddy river using two-part resin and tints, and a clear river using one-part resin. Lastly, he adds waves, ripples, and other details to complete the water scene. […]

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State Line Route in N scale: Modeling rock walls, Episode 16

Using drybrushing techniques to add color to rubber rock castings

David is ready to work on the largest industry on our State Line Route project railroad – the rock quarry! He demonstrates how to use rubber rock castings to make the quarry walls. Then he shows to add realistic color to them using craft paints and drybrushing techniques. […]

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Meet the Modeler: Peter Atonna

A scene on Peter Atonna’s layout

    Hi-rail O gauge modeler Peter Atonna’s work last graced the cover of Classic Toy Trains in October 2017, but his relationship with the magazine goes back at least two layouts to the May 1997 issue. His current one, the detail-packed Seligman & Paulden Lines, showcases the best of long passenger and freight trains […]

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Visit an amazing 4′ x 8′ O gauge layout featuring Lionel, MTH, and K-Line trains

John Cunius' O gauge layout and the cover of Toy Train Layouts for Small Spaces.

John Cunius is truly the “Chairman of the Board” when it comes to his O gauge layout. The display, in a corner of his train room, puts the “fun” in “functional.” It has shelves underneath that hold his collection of locomotives, cars, and other equipment. See this and many other space-saving designs in Classic Toy […]

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